Tusk
by Lucifer's Nightmare
Summary: Andrew Tusk is a bad guy, and Tanith Low has taken an interest in him... Up for adoption, please see profile for other details.
1. Chapter 1

Tusk

_Hey, first proper Skulduggery fic. There's probably gonna be a lot of mistakes, usually when I'm telling you what Skul & Val are doing. And yes, the main character is a bad guy so don't get all angry bout it. Believe me, its happened before..._

_Disclaimer: Skulduggery Pleasant and all concepts related to him belong to Derek Landy. Other unknown characters are property of Vampire Omega._

Andrew Tusk sat across the table from Skulduggery Pleasant, an odd smile on his face. They had been staring at each other like this for a while now, and Andrew was determined not to lose his nerve, especially against a sanctuary detective. Andrew tall and slim, bony with a hint of plumpness. His brown hair looked as if it hadn't been washed in several years, sticking out in all directions. He had a blue shirt, black jacket, red jeans, and black boots. He was slouching in his chair feet resting on the table, and he had no inclination to move. His long, spindly fingers, grimy and unwashed, hung below him, gripping the chair legs loosely.

"Now, Mr. Tusk, I understand you're in jail for numerous accounts of murder." Murmured the Skeleton Detective wisely. "I wish to know why you killed all those people."

Andrew grinned. He couldn't help it, just the memory of those deaths... It made him shudder with anticipation. He hooked a curved nail under his index fingernail, clawing out the dirt. "Well, Mr. Pleasant." Andrew replied thoughtfully. His voice had an odd ring to it, as if it were something you could remember, just couldn't quite place. "You see, they owed me favours. And when they didn't pay back those favours, weeelll... You know the rest."

Andrew was proud of his accent. Not Irish, not British, nor Scottish. No, Andrew had no loyalty, not even to the American Sanctuary. No, all he wanted was to be a free man, and live somewhere warm. Like Australia. Or maybe he'd go to Rio. Andrew pondered that, never mind that he probably wasn't going to be free ever again. Suddenly, Andrew became aware that the girl, Valkyrie Cain, was talking to him. A mere girl, talking to a great murderer like him? Preposterous. However, Andrew had noticed the Necromancy ring on her finger. Andrew himself had considered becoming a Necromancer himself, once upon a time. He had eventually decided against, partly because it took years to become a master and he wasn't that patient, and partly because he got bored and killed his mentor. That wasn't an easy thing, either. It had involved a lot of screaming, and struggling.

"So what you're saying, Andrew Tusk," The girl in black said. "IIs that you killed all those people because they wouldn't pay their debts?"

"That is exactly what I'm saying, Darquesse." As Andrew uttered the last word, Cain stepped back in shock. Andrew's smile grew wider. "Oh, you didn't think we knew? Oh yes, girly, everyone on the streets knows your big secret. Not such a secret now, is it?"

Cain's eyes hardened. Andrew could see her tightly clenched fist, shadows whipping angrily around it. Tusk smiled some more. He just loved to rile people up. No street person knew, of course. Some kid who had been there at the big display had told him. Afterwards, Andrew had killed him, for the simple fun of it. Cain grew even angrier at his nonchalance, drawing back her fist as if to punch him. As Andrew examined the ring, he remembered fondly his own weapon. It had been a double-ended trident which he could use to send spears of shadow around. He had always loved that thing.

Skulduggery placated her and turned back to Andrew. He told Tusk that he would be put into a cell in the Gaol. Andrew responded with a mere wry grin. Skulduggery and Cain escorted him to his cell, which was next to one containing a tattooed, bare chested man with a big moustache and a bald head. Andrew ignored it all, smiling into space. Cain gave him a little shove into the cave and slammed the door with an ominous _thud._

"Come on now honey." Andrew said. "I don't deserve to be in a cell. I oughta be a free man, relaxing on a sun bed in the Caribbean."

"You deserve," Cain yelled. "To be dead and buried, rotting underground, somewhere cold."

Andrew smiled. He knew they couldn't keep him in there for long. Not him, not _the_ Tusk, no way could they keep him in there for longer than a month. At the very most, he'd be out of there in a week. Boy, how wrong Andrew was.

_Okay, so it was kind of a filler chapter, you know, telling the background. Apart from that, how'd I do? Not brilliant, I know, but you know what I mean._

_Peace out_

_V.O._


	2. Chapter 2

Tusk Chapter 2

_I'm not gonna even bother writing a message up here, because this has already been deleted once. Adios!_

Andrew Tusk had been in the cell for two months. It was unheard of, Andrew had never been kept in prison for more than two _weeks_! That in itself was incredible. Normally someone who was indebted to him would have gotten him out by now. Maybe it was that they were too scared, the Skeleton Detective being his captor n' all. Maybe-

Cain burst into his cell room, her eyes locked on his, burning with anger. He offered her a sarcastic smile, accompanied by the words, "Come to let me out, sweetheart? No? Well, that's not very nice now, is it."

She ground her teeth at his insulting words. It seemed that the li'l situation with the Remnants had left her a little more on edge than before. _Feisty little girls and annoyed yet more experienced man equals massacre. Cain will die._

Tusk could see his own brown and green eyes reflected in the girl's own blackish ones. His untamed brown hair was only just visible in her mirroring eyes. Suddenly, a cracking sound was to be heard. Crumbling, breaking rock opened up to reveal Sanguine and that Low girl. Tanith Low, that woman with clothes of brown leather. But somehow, she was different. Her lips were pure black, and more black veins spread out from there. She smiled and whispered something in Sanguine's ear, then gave him a brief kiss, before breaking off to engage the Cain girl with her sword.

Tusk watched the fight eagerly, enjoying the way Cain kept trying to dodge away from the swinging sword, and she already had numerous cuts on her body. Andrew jeered at her, yelling wildly for Tanith to cut her bloody head off, for god's sake, cos' that was what she deserved. Tanith merely continued playing cat and mouse with Cain, with such a look of boredom upon her face that if he hadn't seen the sword in her hand, Andrew would have believed she was just surfing channels on her TV.

"You smell." A voice declared behind him in a south American accent. Andrew turned to look at Sanguine. Sanguine continued. "No seriously, you stink of dirt, and urine, and worms. You sure you haven't already rotted in that stinking cell? Cos' I swear I just saw a massive maggot on your face."

Andrew frowned and focused on Sanguine. "Well?" He asked sharply. "You gonna get me out of here or what?"

Sanguine cackled and resumed searching the side of the cell, tapping his finger on it every now and again. Eventually he gave a little cry of triumph, and very carefully, he tapped his finger on the cell. Which was when the alarm sounded.

"Dammit! I thought that once we'd torn out those damn alarm spells we'd be fine!" Sanguine yelled over the noise of the alarm. Andrew rolled his eyes and yelled back at him.

"After last time, they also installed mechanical alarms, you Yank!"

"Why do people keep calling me Yanks." Sanguine muttered as he continued widening the crack. "I'm from the south, Yanks are from the north."

Eventually it was wide enough, and Sanguine stretched out an arm to take hold of Andrew. Tusk gripped it and pulled himself through. Afterwards he rolled his shoulders and stretched on the balls of his feet. The Cain girl was yelling for bony partner, the Skeleton Detective. Andrew hissed through his teeth, then told Sanguine to block his ears. He yelled at the Low woman to do it as well, and then Tusk opened his mouth as wide as he could, and let loose an amazing song. The tones of the music caused a part of the girl's brain to overload, triggering an intense need to sleep. Almost immediately, Cain dropped to the floor, unconscious.

Tusk clutched his stomach in agony. He was an Adept, and had just activated his ability, which was to temporarily absorb the attributes of living matter. The song was from a Siren, which he had absorbed back when he had worked for the Sanctuary. It was dead now. He turned to see both Tanith and Sanguine remove their fingers from their ears, and they were bleeding from them. Tusk smiled, it was an unfortunate side effect of the Siren that if you blocked her call then you were injured.

"Dang it!" Sanguine cried out angrily. "What the hell didya do ta me? I feel plain wrong!"

"Silence!" Tanith said sharply. "He got us out of this mess better than you were handling it. I almost think I should take his body, except that I cannot be removed from this body at all."

Andrew tried to keep the smug grin off his face, and won after a short battle in which his face muscles spasmed heavily. Tusk shook his head and asked how they were to get out of here. Tanith leaned in and told them there plan. Reluctantly, they agreed.

XXXXXX

Andrew was a claustrophobic. He only realised this after he agreed to let Billy-Ray Sanguine take him down into the underground of the Sanctuary. He hadn't liked the plan at all, and now he hated it. His long fingers were curled into fists, and he was shaking slightly. Billy-Ray had a strong grip on his collar, and was pulling him slowly through the dirt, wincing every yard or so. Tusk snapped at him to hurry up, and Sanguine swore at him. Andrew growled, and wondered how Tanith's part of the plan was going...

XXXXXX

Tanith Low pulled a snow jacket she had pinched from the dressing room tightly around her body. It wouldn't be long until the Cleavers arrived, and she had her katana held tightly in her hand. In fact, this was the Remnant thinking, but it didn't consider itself a Remnant inside a human body, no, it considered itself Tanith Low. Tanith Low glanced back as she heard a pattering of footsteps behind her. A stealthy step echoed slightly around the corridor, and Tanith spun round with her sword flashing.

The blade thudded heavily into the Cleaver's scythe handle. The Cleaver angled the blade down, and Tanith feinted a punch, then swept the man-thing's legs out from under it. It's legs instantly broke, and it crashed to the floor. Tanith plunged her sword int its chest, instantly piercing through its protective clothing. She took a second to marvel at her intense strength, then looked sharply up to see Ghastly Bespoke standing there.

"Tanith? Tanith is that you?" Ghastly took a step forward. "Tanith come on, we can help you."

"Bespoke, Ghastly Bespoke." The scarred man took another step towards her. Tanith decided to change her tactics, she ran towards him, and embraced him, talking desparately. "Ghastly, please help me, please, I need help, please."

"Its okay, its okay, you'll be fine." Ghastly murmured. Tanith smiled an evil smile, and slammed her fist into the side of his head.

Ghastly fell to the floor, groaning. Tanith smiled at him, then her head snapped up to see a crowd of Cleavers charging toward her, Pleasant at the head. Tanith hauled up Bespoke, then threw him at Skulduggery. The Detective stumbled, and Tanith made her escape. 


End file.
